Shop Rite

[Joeg]

Keep us posted.

[standa]

I noticed that the East Haven Shoprite is advertising that it's open on the New Haven Register website.  It has been open almost four months already.  Does it mean that it's not doing so well?

[ynkeesfn82]

It's probably just an ad that needs to be updated. I've seen outdated ads on other newspaper sites as well.

P.S. I was at Shoprite in Waterbury yesterday. There were signs up all over the store stating that due to storms and bad weather some delivery trucks are delayed so some items might be unavailable.

[Joeg]

Any word on the Shoprite of Norwich CT??

[Bdubs]

Norwich has completed their renovations. They didnt throw a grand opening, but Im liking the remodel. I actually only shop there, mainly because they are so much cheaper than the Stop & Shop across town.

[Joeg]

Thats to bad.

[JimSawhill]

Manchester Shop-Rite needs a remodeling. Unless they had one in the last 4 years, it is small.

[ynkeesfn82]

Manchester Shop-Rite needs a remodeling. Unless they had one in the last 4 years, it is small.

Supposedly they did and people still complain it's a dump and ghetto. Plus a few weeks ago they had to recall the ground beef because pieces of the styrafoam the pack it in got mixed in with the meat. I don't know if their sister store in East Hartford is any better.

[Bdubs]

Manchester Shop-Rite needs a remodeling. Unless they had one in the last 4 years, it is small.

Supposedly they did and people still complain it's a dump and ghetto. Plus a few weeks ago they had to recall the ground beef because pieces of the styrafoam the pack it in got mixed in with the meat. I don't know if their sister store in East Hartford is any better.

I just walked through E. Htfd a couple weeks ago just out of curiousity, havent stepped in there since it was Shaws. Its kept up quite nice, pretty much looks the same. It was busy too, busier than I remember Shaws ever being.

[bubcolbert1952]

I get the feeling one or more ShopRite operators will buy the Redner's "warehouse market" chain mostly (only?) in Pennsylvania. ShopRite traditionally stuck to the City of Philadelphia in that state, but has been recently expanding into smaller cities such as Allentown, so Redner's would be a great fit for ShopRite.

[BillyGr]

I get the feeling one or more ShopRite operators will buy the Redner's "warehouse market" chain mostly (only?) in Pennsylvania. ShopRite traditionally stuck to the City of Philadelphia in that state, but has been recently expanding into smaller cities such as Allentown, so Redner's would be a great fit for ShopRite.

From their site - looks like 4 in DE, 4 in MD, 36 in PA - plus they also have Quick Shoppes (Convenience stores), 1 in MD, 13 in PA.  They formerly had one store in Middletown, NY as well.

They are private and employee owned, and apparently have their own warehouse facility, so I don't know if they would want to join up with ShopRite.
However, if they did they could probably join as a new owner, the same as Klein's in MD did a couple years ago, rather than being bought by an existing owner. 

[bubcolbert1952]

Redner's somehow has (or used to anyway) a contract to sell Supervalu products. This must have been a disaster for Acme, because when Acme and most of Albertsons were owned by Supervalu, Supervalu products were sold at Acme, Albertsons, Jewel (Osco) etc, but with the products given the name of whatever store chain they were being sold at. I wonder if these same products were customized for all the other Supervalu-owned chains (ones not formerly owned by Albertsons before Albertsons sold itself to Supervalu) or not. The Shoppers chain in Baltimore/DC, Shop N Save chain in Pittsburgh, and Save-A-Lot chain all over the USA should all have gotten their own versions I would think, but maybe not because these chains all are pretty much bottom of the barrel. I guess Supervalu wanted to move upscale (but not too much) by buying Albertsons, but maybe Supervalu decided they couldn't afford to operate these more valuable stores over the long term, leading them to sell to Cerberus Group, which my understanding is already owned the few surviving Albertsons stores in the South after Supervalu bought the majority of Albertsons-named stores in the Western states, along with all of Acme, Jewel/Osco, and Shaw's/Star Markets.

Now that Acme is owned by Cerberus, perhaps they will revive the old "Ideal" store-brand items? Or even the Super Saver brand for items that they once used in the 70's?

[FitchMike26]

I don't see Redner's having any interest in joining ShopRite. Redner's is 100% employee owned, and seems to like it that way.

[store215]

Redner's somehow has (or used to anyway) a contract to sell Supervalu products.

Redner's is supplied by Supervalu. Before that, they were supplied by Richfood, which Supervalu took over in the early 2000's. (Strangely, during the Richfood time, some store brand non-food items seemed to be supplied by Wakefern/ShopRite). The Richfood store brand was dropped when Essential Everyday came out.

I'm guessing Acme still has a contract with Supervalu to supply it for a certain amount of time...who knows what will happen after that.

Essential Everyday has sort of become a 'standalone' brand. I've even seen coupons every now and then for their products in coupon flyers, without a mention of a specific store.

[FitchMike26]

Redner's is supplied by SuperValu. They sell the Essential Everyday brand in their Philadelphia area stores.

The advertisements for the Essential Everyday brand often have a web link, saying "go to this website to find a store near you!"

It seems they are marketing themselves as a standalone brand.

[BillyGr]

(Strangely, during the Richfood time, some store brand non-food items seemed to be supplied by Wakefern/ShopRite).

That may not be as strange as it seems - I ran into at least one store (Heinens) in Ohio that did the same thing, carrying ShopRite branded items, but only in things that would have a long shelf life (paper products as a good example).

Maybe this is something that Wakefern has tried out as a way of getting better deals by being able to buy larger quantities of their branded items?  After all, it wouldn't be too hard to do, as they would only have to send a truck occasionally, as these items could be stored for a longer time.

[ynkeesfn82]

That may not be as strange as it seems - I ran into at least one store (Heinens) in Ohio that did the same thing, carrying ShopRite branded items, but only in things that would have a long shelf life (paper products as a good example).

Maybe this is something that Wakefern has tried out as a way of getting better deals by being able to buy larger quantities of their branded items?  After all, it wouldn't be too hard to do, as they would only have to send a truck occasionally, as these items could be stored for a longer time.

Wakerfern does have some customers in Ohio. Check this out and read the small print at the bottom. http://wakefern.shoprite.com/wholesale/our-customers/

[ynkeesfn82]

I was at Shoprite in Waterbury, CT on Wednesday and in many ways they are better than Shoprite in Southington. For example their sandwiches are much better. The bread is better, there's more meat and veggies on them, and I think they are bigger too. They're a little bit more money than the ones in Southington, but you know what? You get what you pay for.

Secondly they have a great deal at Shoprite in Waterbury for lunch. Unfortunately I wasn't aware of the lunch special until after I blew my money for a awful lunch at Royal Buffet next door. At Shoprite they have 1 slice of cheese pizza and a soda for $1.75 - in Southington if they have pizza slices at all they charge more than that just for a slice without soda!

What a difference different owners make.

[Ames Newington]

I was at Shoprite in Waterbury, CT on Wednesday and in many ways they are better than Shoprite in Southington. For example their sandwiches are much better. The bread is better, there's more meat and veggies on them, and I think they are bigger too. They're a little bit more money than the ones in Southington, but you know what? You get what you pay for.

Secondly they have a great deal at Shoprite in Waterbury for lunch. Unfortunately I wasn't aware of the lunch special until after I blew my money for a awful lunch at Royal Buffet next door. At Shoprite they have 1 slice of cheese pizza and a soda for $1.75 - in Southington if they have pizza slices at all they charge more than that just for a slice without soda!

What a difference different owners make.

West Hartford doesn't much of anything as far as prepared foods are concerned. All they have is sandwiches, wraps, soups, and rotisserie chickens. Some of the time they will make hot foods by the pound and put them in the rotisserie chicken case sold by the pound. It seems like enough, but the selections are minimal. They also make good salads, but not daily. No pizza by the slice. They got rid of most of their daily hot food specials. They furthermore took away the seating area in the front of the store for a Gluten Free section.

[Stork of The Weak]

I recently went to a "The Fresh Grocer" store in Philadelphia (The Fresh Grocer was a local chain just bought by ShopRite, and one of their stores was recently rebranded to ShopRite) and now am trying to figure out a mystery. There was a fairly large room being used for storage in the front of the store that had a window wall separating it from the rest of the store. It looked like this room had once been used for a post office or some other leased department. Automatic doors that were closed and turned off also separated it from the rest of the store. I was in a hurry and all the lines at this store were long, so I couldn't find anyone to ask what the room used to be. But I saw a square logo that had been painted over in black, printed on the door to this store. Underneath that covered up square was the slogan "IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST". Whose slogan could that possibly be? Sounds like a bank (which would make sense as banks are often in supermarkets) but this space looked nothing like a bank inside, rather it looked like it was once used for a whole other store of some kind, although much smaller than the main The Fresh Grocer store.

Please anyone who can help me solve this quest help!

[FitchMike26]

Hi Stork!

This space was used for a Pennsylvania Wine & Spirits store. "In the public interest" is the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board slogan.

I do not know why this store closed; but PLCB stores routinely open/close for various reasons.

When a store is operated within an existing grocery store, the state refers to it as a "one stop shop" store.

Mystery solved!

[Stork of The Weak]

Thanks! Have you ever been to this particular Fresh Grocer (or should I call it ShopRite?) store? It seems remarkable in being the only supermarket around for miles, and is the only Fresh Grocer store with a gas station.

[FitchMike26]

What is the address of this particular location? I can't recall any that sell gasoline.

[Stork of The Weak]

Address is this: 5601 Chestnut St, Philadelphia, PA 19139

[FitchMike26]

Ah, 56th & Chestnut. See, Fresh Grocer has multiple stores within 20 minutes of there. So I was not sure which one you meant. I'll have to check out the location in the near future. i did not know they sold gasoline!

On a related note, a limited amount of Shoprite stores also sell gasoline.

[Stork of The Weak]

Hi Stork!

This space was used for a Pennsylvania Wine & Spirits store. "In the public interest" is the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board slogan.

I do not know why this store closed; but PLCB stores routinely open/close for various reasons.

When a store is operated within an existing grocery store, the state refers to it as a "one stop shop" store.

Mystery solved!

What's up with those stores each having a different logo? There seem to be several logos the PLCB uses but no clear pattern to which stores have which.

[TheFugitive]

Hi Stork!

This space was used for a Pennsylvania Wine & Spirits store. "In the public interest" is the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board slogan.

I do not know why this store closed; but PLCB stores routinely open/close for various reasons.

When a store is operated within an existing grocery store, the state refers to it as a "one stop shop" store.

Mystery solved!

What's up with those stores each having a different logo? There seem to be several logos the PLCB uses but no clear pattern to which stores have which.

Pennsylvania's liquor stores are actually owned and operated by the state government (since the day Prohibition ended).
For many decades they were simply referred to as "State Stores".
And the signs on all of them said "State Store" for many years.

In the past twenty years or so it has become increasingly evident to people here that it is stupid
to have the state in the retail business.  They don't run it very well.

In order to push back the state store system has made a number of efforts at rebranding.
"Wine and Spirits".  "Fine Wine and Spirits"   "Pennsylvania's Fine Wine and Sprits".  etc.
Anything to try and get people to forget that the state government is responsible for the debacle.

An effort to privatize liquor sales just failed yet again.
I think these rebranding efforts come to a screeching halt every time they introduce
a bill, and start up again once the state store system again survives.

[MikeRa]

Hi Stork!

This space was used for a Pennsylvania Wine & Spirits store. "In the public interest" is the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board slogan.

I do not know why this store closed; but PLCB stores routinely open/close for various reasons.

When a store is operated within an existing grocery store, the state refers to it as a "one stop shop" store.

Mystery solved!

What's up with those stores each having a different logo? There seem to be several logos the PLCB uses but no clear pattern to which stores have which.

Pennsylvania's liquor stores are actually owned and operated by the state government (since the day Prohibition ended).
For many decades they were simply referred to as "State Stores".
And the signs on all of them said "State Store" for many years.

In the past twenty years or so it has become increasingly evident to people here that it is stupid
to have the state in the retail business.  They don't run it very well.

In order to push back the state store system has made a number of efforts at rebranding.
"Wine and Spirits".  "Fine Wine and Spirits"   "Pennsylvania's Fine Wine and Sprits".  etc.
Anything to try and get people to forget that the state government is responsible for the debacle.

An effort to privatize liquor sales just failed yet again.
I think these rebranding efforts come to a screeching halt every time they introduce
a bill, and start up again once the state store system again survives.

The PA State House passed the bill to privatize the stores, the PA Senate killed the bill, and both parts of the PA General assembely is controlled by the same party.

[MikeRa]

Ah, 56th & Chestnut. See, Fresh Grocer has multiple stores within 20 minutes of there. So I was not sure which one you meant. I'll have to check out the location in the near future. i did not know they sold gasoline!

On a related note, a limited amount of Shoprite stores also sell gasoline.

I just looked on Bing Maps, and this Fresh Grocer has gas pumps on site.  it also has the SEPTA Market -Frankford Line's 56th Street Station on the property as well.

[ynkeesfn82]

Although a couple were part of separate deals it's been 4 years since Shoprite took over some of the Shaw's stores in Connecticut. The announcement was made in February 2010 and the stores began reopening as Shoprite in May 2010. Shoprite now has 25 locations in Connecticut spread out over 8 owners. If I'm not mistake here's the break down.

Cingari Family

1. Southbury
2. Stamford #1
3. Stamford #2
4. Brookfield
5. Norwalk
6. Derby
7. Fairfield
8. Shelton
9. Stratford

Capano Family

10. New London
11. Norwich
12. Clinton

Garafalo Family

13. Milford
14. East Haven
15. West Haven
16. Hamden

Miller Family

17. Enfield

Drust Family

18. Wallingford
19. Southington

Cohen Family

20. East Hartford
21. Manchester

Joseph Family

22. Canton
23. West Hartford

Tornaquindici Family

24. Bristol
25. Waterbury


The way I see things there's room in Connecticut for at least 4 more stores.

There are no stores in the New Britain area. That would include: New Britain, Berlin, Newington Rocky Hill, Wethersfield

There are no stores in the Middletown area. That would include: Middeltown, Middlefield, Durham.

There are no stores in Litchfield County. That would included: Torrington, Litchfield, etc.

They can also put one in the Danbury, Newtown, Monroe area.